Linda, thanks for all your good work.
Player A hits his ball from the fairway into the woods that
has an adjacent fairway. We look for his ball for five minutes, during which
time he finds someone else's ball. We wonder if someone from the other fairway
picked up his ball. We ride to their green where the players are putting out. Sure
enough, one of the players had picked up his ball, which was properly marked
and identified. Is player A restricted to 5 minutes, must play from the
original spot and therefore be penalized stroke and distance? Can he drop his
found ball about where it should have landed and proceed from there with no
penalty? Is this an outside agency situation and therefore he should go back to
his original spot with no penalty?
Thanks,
Lou from Georgetown, Texas
Dear Lou,
The answer will not make you happy. If a player has searched
for five minutes and has not found his ball, it is “lost” by definition. He
must play another ball under stroke and distance. The fact that another player
has picked up his ball does not change this ruling [Decision 27/6].
If the matter is resolved within five minutes, the player
will place the ball if the original spot is known, or drop it as near as
possible to where it originally lay if the spot is not determinable [Rule
20-3c].
Thank you for not sharing the conversation that ensued when
the player retrieved his ball from the thief.
Linda
Copyright © 2017 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
